Managing self

Explanation:
This competency is associated with self-motivation, a “can-do” attitude, and with students seeing themselves as capable learners. It is integral to self-assessment.
Students who manage themselves are enterprising, resourceful, reliable, and resilient. They establish personal goals, make plans, manage projects, and set high standards. They have strategies for meeting challenges. They know when to lead, when to follow, and when and how to act independently.

I have so much against these self ordering number systems now. =.=

Questions:
  1. Do you think you managed yourself and your time well in order to complete the tasks you needed to do for your group?
  • Charisse: I think I managed my time pretty well because we finished almost all the things we need in the first few weeks and for the rest of the time we discuss how to film our documentary which took more time.

  • Jacky: I also agree that we managed our time well, we had great cooperation therefore finished our work quickly with ease and in the first few weeks we had finished most of our work. However we began to struggle a bit when deciding how to film the documentary, overall though we managed our time well.

  1. What was the biggest challenge for managing yourself within a group?

  • Charisse: Although we didn't live near each other, we used msn to discuss things so communication is not really a big problem for us. My partner co-operated with me pretty well so I found things pretty easy. The biggest challenge is probably that we both got distracted easily in class so the progress become slower.

  • Jacky: To be honest, we didn't have a lot of problems during our inquiry infact the only problem was that we couldn't concentrate in class at all unless we were isolated from the rest which only happened rarely although this did not hinder our work progess at all.
  1. How did you overcome this challenge?

  • Charisse: I decided what we will do in class before school so we got an aim to work on ; sometimes I reminded my partner to concentrate.

  • Jacky: Like Charisse said, she decided what we would do in class, however we also worked at home in order to maximize our working progress this really helped us a lot because we had finished A LOT by the time everyone was on the saturation stage.

  1. Describe an instance where you took the lead in your group and why. If you were the group leader, what did you do particularly well when leading?

  • Charisse: Our group didn't have a leader because we thought that was not necessary. We just did what we need to finish. If I was the leader, I would prepare a scedule with things that needed to be done each day.

  • Jacky: Having a leader in the group would create unnecessary drama which would hinder our work progress, however if I was the group leader, I would attempt to keep everyone "on task" and make sure our work was up to standards, also I would try to keep a balance between the work or attempt to do more to keep a good "role."

  1. On a scale of 1-5 (with 5 being the best), how independent were you in completing your tasks?

  • Charisse: Since this inquiry was a group work, we mostly work togather. We would each look for the information and put the links onto this wiki and then we can each took some notes down. I would give myself a 3 because I did what I need to do and then finished the whole work with Jacky, including editing.

  • Jacky: Only at times did we work independently such as when we gathered information or when we were split into two groups, one to write the script whereas the other searched for answers, however I would only give myself a 3 too because I certainly took my time when working independently which was not good for the team however I still finished my work on time and helped with the group work.

Relating to others

Relating to others is about interacting effectively with a diverse range of people in a variety of contexts. This competency includes the ability to listen actively, recognise different points of view, negotiate, and share ideas.
Students who relate well to others are open to new learning and able to take different roles in different situations. They are aware of how their words and actions affect others. They know when it is appropriate to compete and when it is appropriate to co-operate. By working effectively together, they can come up with new approaches, ideas, and ways of thinking.

Questions:
  1. What was the best thing about working as a group?

  • Charisse: Working as a group is great. We shared different ideas, learned from each other and came up with some brand new ideas which we are both satisfied at.

  • Jacky: The benefits of working as a group is awesome, you get to see someone else's point of view rather than yourselves, two minds working on an inquiry has a better output than one mind working on an inquiry.

  1. What the most difficult thing about working as a group?
  • Charisse: As I said before, I don't really ffind anything hard. We co-operated with each other pretty well and we both understand the reason when the other person did not like an idea. We accepted the advices from each other which made our work even better.

  • Jacky: Nothing at all was difficult working as a group, in fact I found it much more easier than working alone, but that's only if you can cooperate with your partner and are both open minded. Although, if I was forced to say something was difficult working as a group I'd say our time schedules were different, I was completely free except on a Tuesday, whereas Charisse was almost busy everyday.

  1. Was there a time when you had to compromise on something you wanted to do? Explain...

  • Charisse: I don't think so. We did not compromise on anything.

  • Jacky: Sec, went to get glasses. :P

  1. Explain how your group co-operated.

  • Charisse: We both finished the work we were responsible for and we did not argue over things.
  1. Explain an instance where someone in your group did not co-operate. How did this impact on the rest of the group? Charisse: No one in our group did not co-operate. If a person did not co-operate, it will slow down the progress of the entire group and the teammates will not be happy when they are working.


The following sections must be completed as a group. You may present the answers any way you wish. Some ideas are: video, Voicethread, written reflection, voice file, etc. It must be posted on your eportfolio.


KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING ABOUT SOCIAL SCIENCES

1. What is the issue related to sustainability that your group chose to inquire about?
2. What is the cause of your issue? (the reason why it is in fact an issue)
3. What effect has your issue had on our environment?
4. What are some ways people are using resources that contributes to the issue your group chose?
5. What are some choices people can make that will address your issue?

Thinking Explanation:

Thinking is about using creative, critical, and metacognitive processes to make sense of information, experiences, and ideas. These processes can be applied to purposes such as developing understanding, making decisions, shaping actions, or constructing knowledge. Intellectual curiosity is at the heart of this competency.
Students who are competent thinkers and problem-solvers actively seek, use, and create knowledge. They reflect on their own learning, draw on personal knowledge and intuitions, ask questions, and challenge the basis of assumptions and perceptions.

Questions/ Tasks:
1. Explain how your group used the following types of thinking to make sense of information, experiences, and ideas you may have encountered throughout your inquiry process:

  • creative thinking;
  • critical thinking;
  • metacognition (thinking about what sort of thinking you needed to use!);

2. Explain how the types of questions helped you to gain the information needed to develop strong knowledge about your issue?
3. What other information do you think you needed to find out?


Using language, symbols, and texts

Explanation:
Using language, symbols, and texts is about working with and making meaning of the codes in which knowledge is expressed. Languages and symbols are systems for representing and communicating information, experiences, and ideas. People use languages and symbols to produce texts of all kinds: written, oral/aural, and visual; informative and imaginative; informal and formal; mathematical, scientific, and technological.
Students who are competent users of language, symbols, and texts can interpret and use words, number, images, movement, metaphor, and technologies in a range of contexts. They recognise how choices of language, symbol, or text affect people’s understanding and the ways in which they respond to communications. They confidently use ICT (including, where appropriate, assistive technologies) to access and provide information and to communicate with others.

Upload the video of your presentation under this heading and answer the following questions...
Question:
How did videos, images, online tools, movement, words, symbols, numbers, choice of language types, etc help to aid the delivery of your presentation so the class gained learned lots of new things about your issue?


Participating and contributing

This competency is about being actively involved in communities. Communities include family, whānau, and school and those based, for example, on a common interest or culture. They may be drawn together for purposes such as learning, work, celebration, or recreation. They may be local, national, or global. This competency includes a capacity to contribute appropriately as a group member, to make connections with others, and to create opportunities for others in the group.
Students who participate and contribute in communities have a sense of belonging and the confidence to participate within new contexts. They understand the importance of balancing rights, roles, and responsibilities and of contributing to the quality and sustainability of social, cultural, physical, and economic environments.

Questions:
  1. How did your group delegate roles and responsibilities?
  2. Was the share of work fair for everyone? If yes, explain. If no, explain.
  3. How do you think you now contribute to a sustainable environment as a result of this inquiry and what you have learnt?